Cunningham Family News
My
better half, Linda: Two years ago, Linda became licensed as a nurse's assistant
and has been working full time at an area nursing home. She has been a
tremendous help to me with proofreading, layout and many other things. Despite
my blindness, we even cut firewood together. I feed the logs to her, and she
wields an 18" chain saw--quite the lady!
We
rent out the big house where we reared our children and renovated what used to
be a barn, office, store room and Bunkhouse, turning it into a cute, 2-storey,
one bedroom cottage where we have been living since July of 2005.
Kate:
Kate married one of our photographers, Kevin, in 2005 and they live in Arizona
because Kevin hates Vermont winters. On September 27, 2007 they homebirthed
their first baby, whom they have named "Indalee Zuri." She was a
little over 8 lbs. at birth and is very beautiful. Kate is adjusting to the
demands of the womanly art of breastfeeding.
Therese:
Therese is now living in the Colorado Rockies, supervising the teaching of skiing
and snowboarding and also working as a waitress. She was present at Indalee's
birth and proved indispensable as a helper, especially during and after the
birth.
Zeke:
Sgt. Melchizedech Cunningham reenlisted in the Marines after doing a Gulf Tour.
He is at Officer Candidate School at The Citadel in South Carolina. Last summer
he successfully completed his second "boot camp," but this time, for
officers, and in Quantico, Virginia rather than Parris Island.
Maureen:
After four years in the Air Force, Maureen lives in Illinois with her civil
husband, who also did his time in the USAF. On January 19 she gave birth to 3
lb Baby Brennan, who had "Potter's Syndrome," which means he had no
kidneys and hence too little amniotic fluid to develop his lungs. She knew this
in early pregnancy, and resolved simply to give him all the love she could,
until his Maker should call him. Accordingly, after Linda baptized him
immediately after live birth, Brennan survived less than 24 hours, being
literally "loved to death." Though this is a very sad story, we know
that, through baptism, Brennan is an adopted son of God and a member of the
mystical body of Christ with original sin removed, and thus is most assuredly a
saint in heaven despite his brief stay in this valley of tears. Notes of
consolation can be emailed to her at: MAILTO:mmobyd@yahoo.com
Article:
Maureen's Story
Maureen
now works as a care-giver at an Illinois half-way house for adults who lack
full mental abilities.
Kaz:
During his 2nd semester at Vermont Technical College, majoring in architecture,
Kaz chose to withdraw and re-enter the working world as a landscaper. He says
he wants to return to school in the future. He has taken up amateur boxing.
My
Dad, Charles W. Cunningham: Fourteen years ago, Dad licked prostate cancer, but
early in 2007 it returned and spread to his liver and bladder. After he was
admitted to a hospice in Ft. Myers, Florida, Linda and I rushed down in our 41
mpg Toyota Yaris. When we called from Orlando, we discovered that we were too
late to be at his side in death, as he died just three hours previously. We
continued on to console Mom and participate in a memorial service. I am told I
had everybody crying, speaking on Dad's moral standard of living by many
memorized and oft quoted proverbs. He had just turned 80 last autumn. He was an
auto parts entrepreneur with a partnership in three stores in Massachusetts.
Since he was a resident of Windham, New Hampshire, his Mass of the Resurrection
was held there at St. Matthew's parish last May. It occasioned the family
reunion of all the Cunninghams except Kate, who felt too pregnant to fly. Mom
is doing well adjusting to life alone after 50xxx years of marriage. She is in
the process of selling off Dad's "toys," such as his pontoon motor boat,
Ford Bronco, and top quality billiards table. She plans to return to Ft. Myers,
Florida, for the winter.
Dad
taught me a lot about hard work, and how not to be intimidated by what can
appear to be mountains. He attended Sunday Mass every week and I can recall
walking past his bedroom door late at night and finding him on his knees. Would
that there were more dads like him! Requiescat
in pace!
Yours
truly: After the termination of our three-year contract, during which time Tom
Caldwell of Naturist New Hampshire produced three digital, oNLIne issues of NLI
magazine (No's 29, 30 & 31), I decided to reinherit the publishing
dimension of Naturist LIFE International, Inc. once again. Since my health is
not as robust as it used to be, this is a rather daunting task, and Linda often
second-guesses whether I made a prudent decision. But the three years' break
was good for me and I feel I need to resume NLI publishing since my proposed Theology of the Body Retreats
are not yet working out, and it is better to work than to lie a-bed and wait
for the grim reaper. My cadaver kidney is now nearly fifteen years old and is
slowing down and cleaning my blood less efficiently than back in the 90s. This
means I am not as physically strong and do not feel as good.
My
plans include converting all 24 issues of our publications that have gone
out-of-print to either a CD format or hopefully, reprints of the magazines in
physical form once again.
I
also plan to return NLI magazine to a print format once again, but this time
most likely in full color. I also plan to organize the first Vermont Naturist
Photo Safari since 2004 this coming July.
In
September, 2007, National Geographic Cable TV aired several showings of the
"Taboo" show they filmed in 2006, including an interview with me and
other attendees of our annual Finnish Christmas Sauna Party. I was part of a
segment on Christian nudists, sandwiched between the odd bedfellows of the
skyclad Wiccans of Australia and the (naked) "spirit-man" ritual of
Japanese Shinto. The editing poorly represented the seriousness and depth of my
gymnosophy, but at least did no harm, and undoubtedly piqued the interest of
many viewers. I feel honored to have been filmed for National Geographic, as in
my youth, that magazine, perhaps more than any other, most helped me to
question the accepted custom of almost always being clothed. If you missed the
show and its reruns, I will have DVDs available soon.
The
other significant event this past year was a clothing-optional book signing at
The Tempest Bookshop in Waitsfield, Vermont. The Associated Press announced it,
and it got lots of attention in the public, but only a handful of men showed up
for the event. At least it brought attention to my book, Nudity &
Christianity.
Last
summer Linda and I managed to trek to the nude beach we founded 23 years ago at
Lake Willoughby. They were wonderful, restful days spent with others who
believe in the dignity of the naked body and prove it by not hiding it as
though it were somehow evil. Even though I have no vision, simply knowing that
people are always discovering the joys of social nudity for their first time gives
me pleasure. Because we founded that beach back in 1984, perhaps hundreds of
people have dared to experience the joy and freedom by the example of us and
the many other regular naturists who do a great job keeping the tradition going.
The
buyer of most of the former NLI property (pool, lodge + 93 acres) recently
called and wants to resell for $230K. Let me know if you are interested.